Barrow forward Charlie Emslie makes “dream” international debut

Josh McAllister
Charlie Emslie in action for Barrow

Charlie Emslie in action for Barrow

Barrow star Charlie Emslie made his Scotland debut over the weekend against Jamaica, making an impact from the bench.

The forward, who qualifies to play for Scotland through his father, scored twice against the Reggae Warriors in the international fixture that took place at Featherstone. His debut saw him earn heritage number #203.

Speaking after his Scotland debut, Emslie said: “I’m absolutely over the moon. I don’t think I’ve ever been this happy.

“It’s stuff that you dream of when you start playing rugby – making your international honours. Then to score two on your debut is alright isn’t it!”

Charlie Emslie proud to represent his Scottish heritage

Barrow’s Young Player of the Year 2021 has progressed through Scotland’s system, featuring for their Under-19s and earning honours for their Students side.

He continued: “When I played that first game for Students, singing the national anthem means so much to me and means so much to my family.

“My dad travels everywhere and my mum and my brothers all travel to watch me. Dad’s from Dundee, his family have watched me everywhere I go, so it’s to do it for them really.

“My dad is the proudest, he’s my number one fan.”

Emslie opened the scoring for the Bravehearts. Team-mates Will Oakes, Ben Hellewell and Dale Ferguson also crossed for tries. Lachlan Walmsley converted all five goals on debut.

The result finished in a 30-30 draw as Jamaica came back from a 30-10 score, with Jy-Mel Coleman, Ben Jones-Bishop, Joe Brown and Jordan Andrade all scoring for Jermaine Coleman’s side.

Scotland head coach Nathan Graham said: “I have known Charlie since he was in the Under-19s.

“He played for me when I was coaching the students team. Now he’s progressed to the first team so it’s absolutely brilliant for him.

“I thought we started off really poorly but bringing Dale Ferguson and Charlie Emslie off the bench gave us some go-forward and turned the game around.”

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